Mexico to play Peru with local league lineup

Mexico City, April 12 (IANS) Mexico plans to play Peru in a soccer friendly April 17 in San Francisco, California, with a lineup composed entirely of players from the local league, the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) announced.

Among the 20 players of Mexico’s national team, brought together by coach Jose Manuel de la Torre, there are no players from current national champion Tijuana, which recently qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2013 Libertadores Cup organizsed by regional soccer body Concacaf (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football).

Most of the players were recruited from popular Mexico teams America and Cruz Azul, each of which will supply four players, while Tigres, which currently leads this year’s Closing Tournament, will supply three players, Xinhua reports.

De la Torre selected goalkeepers Jose Corona, from Cruz Azul, and Alfredo Talavera, from Toluca.

The defensive players include Francisco Javier Rodriguez, Jesus Molina and Diego Reyes from America; Hugo Ayala, Israel Jimenez and Jorge Torres Nilo from Tigres; and Gerardo Flores from Cruz Azul.

Gerardo Torrado and Pablo Barrera from Cruz Azul; Carlos Pena, Luis Montes de Leon and Hector Herrera from Pachuca; and Javier Cortes and Efrain Velarde from Pumas will play midfield.

Mexico’s offensive players include Angel Reyna from Pachuca, Omar Bravo from Atlas, Raul Jimenez from America and Rafael Marquez Lugo from Guadalajara.

The game will mark Mexico’s second friendly match against Peru, out of five friendlies it is scheduled to play this year in the US as part of a multimillion-dollar contract with Soccer United Marketing.

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